Setting Up Your Kicks With Buakaw Banchamek
The Roundhouse kick is one of the most popular kicks in Muay Thai. It has become famous due to its effectiveness in many different competitions like MMA and kickboxing, where it used to inflict a lot of damage and possibly finish the fight.
When we look at the kick, we see that it resembles a strike with a baseball bat as the part we’re hitting with is the shinbone that can do a lot of damage due to its hardness. We use the kick so often because it can break through the opponent’s defenses and can break his arms if he blocks it due to the sheer amount of power it has behind it.
To perform a middle kick (a form of roundhouse kick aimed at the ribs area), a practitioner needs to have a straight support leg as he comes up on his toes and rotates his hips into the kick to keep the momentum and kick throughout the target.
Still, many practitioners have a problem with putting their hips into the kick, which is the most critical detail in a kick that relies on power and momentum. Not putting our hips into the target is a technical error and not a biomechanical problem, as many people think.
To easily understand how to put our hips into the kick, we can perform a drill with a partner. He will hold his hand in front of his body directly at the centerline, and I will touch his hand with my knee without extending my leg for the kick. When we can understand that to put our hips into the target, our knee must surpass his centerline; we will be able to kick through our target with all the momentum behind it.
In this video, Buakaw Banchamak will show us how he consistently sets up his middle kicks to land on his opponents.
Who Is Buakaw Banchamek?
Buakaw Banchamek is an elite Muay Thai fighter known for his unique athletic ability and excellent skills. Buakaw was competing in Muay Thai from a very young age like many other Thai kids, but he rose to fame quickly and made good impressions winning fights across the country. Today Buakaw is considered a legend in Muay Thai and the pride of Thailand.
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Finding The Openings For Our Kicks
The video starts with Buakaw explaining what is the correct stance to use in Muay Thai. We always want to be comfortable as we move around, so keep in mind that you are not on your heels and always bouncy on your toes, ready to strike.
After we can pay attention to our stance, I want to know the basic steps and punches that will set up most of our kicks. When we want to perform our kicks, pay attention to how Buakaw is always stepping forward with his kicks.
The next thing we want to pay attention to, is the range. If the range is too far and we try to kick, we will miss, or the opponent will easily pull away as he sees the kick coming.
Buakaw shares that his favorite way to keep the range optimal without any risk of the opponent pulling away or missing the target is to get his back against the ropes. Notice that once the opponent’s back is against the ropes, he cannot avoid my kick as the ropes block him.
Our opponent can move sideways, which is optimal for landing our roundhouse kick without missing. I can land the kick with both legs; if he steps to his left, I can catch him with the right kick; if he steps to his right, I can catch him with the left kick.
So we can see that once the opponent back is against the rope, we will always land our kick. Now to walk him into the ropes, we need to use our punches and forward pressure; once he is on the ropes, the openings for our kicks will always be there.
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